Penns Landing / Waterfront

Holiday Inn Express Philadelphia Penns Landing

★★★★★

The Holiday Inn Express Philadelphia Penns Landing is the hotel to choose when the budget matters more than the lobby. It sits at 100 North Columbus Boulevard on the Delaware River waterfront, across the boulevard from Cherry Street Pier and near the Race Street Pier and the RiverLink ferry to Camden, and it offers what the brand does best: clean, functional rooms, a free hot breakfast every morning and friendly, efficient service at prices that usually undercut Center City hotels. Rooms have queen or king beds, a work desk, a coffee maker and free Wi-Fi, and many look out over the Delaware River and the Benjamin Franklin Bridge or back toward the Center City skyline. The hotel carries a renovated label, there is a fitness center on site, and the property is smoke-free. Know what you are not getting: there is no pool, no full-service restaurant and no bar scene, pets are not allowed, and self-parking is charged daily, though at a lower rate than most downtown hotels. The location is the trade-off and the advantage at once. You are on the waterfront, a short walk from the seasonal attractions along the Delaware River, and about fifteen minutes on foot from Elfreth's Alley, Christ Church and the Liberty Bell; but you have to cross Columbus Boulevard and the I-95 corridor to reach Old City, which is a wide and busy walk. For travelers who will be out all day and only need a comfortable, inexpensive place to sleep and eat breakfast, it is excellent value.

How to make the most of it: eat the included breakfast, then walk up Race or Market Street to Old City for a morning at the historic sites. Evenings on the waterfront can be lovely, with the bridge lit up over the river, and Spruce Street Harbor Park and the winter rink at Penn's Landing are close when they are in season. The ferry to Camden puts the aquarium and the battleship on the New Jersey side within reach for families. If you are driving, the hotel's own parking is convenient for road-trippers, with easy access to I-95; on very busy nights some vehicles may be valeted, and oversized vehicles cannot be accommodated.

Room craft: ask for a river-view room on a higher floor; the views of the Benjamin Franklin Bridge at night are the hotel's best feature. Light sleepers should request a room away from the boulevard side. For New Year's Eve, when the waterfront fireworks draw big crowds, book well ahead and note the hotel's special valet rules that night.

Who it suits: budget travelers, road-trippers with cars, families who value free breakfast over a pool, groups and anyone who plans to spend all day out sightseeing. It is not the place for a romantic weekend or a hotel experience in itself; for that, look at the boutique hotels in Old City or Rittenhouse. As a clean, well-located, inexpensive base for the historic district, it is one of the best values in the city.